Messi spent $17.6 million buying the Gulfstream V at the end of 2018. This plane can reach a speed of 940km/h and a maximum range of 12,000km.

As the highest-paid player in the world today, Lionel Messi owns a “car collection” that is said to be worth tens of millions of dollars. Besides the supercar, this striker also owns an expensive private jet.

Messi’s plane is a 2004 Gulfstream V, manufactured by Gulfstream Aerospace of the United States. Gulfstream V is a commercial jet, introduced in 1997. Powered by 2 Rolls-Royce BR700-710A1-10 turbofan engines, Gulfstream V can reach a maximum speed of Mach 0.88 (equivalent to Mach 0.88). 940km/h) and a cruise speed of Mach 0.83 (equivalent to 882km/h).

Gulfstream V can reach a maximum altitude of about 16km, a maximum range of 12,000km. With this number, G-5 (nickname of Gulfstream V) is Gulfstream’s longest-range commercial aircraft model at the time of launch.

With the dimensions of length x width x height of 29m x 28m x 8m, respectively, Messi’s plane has enough room for 14 passengers and 4 crew members.

Inside, this model has 2 bathrooms and a private kitchen. On long flights, 16 seats for passengers can be converted into 8 beds. Originally, the interior space of Gulfstream V was luxurious with materials such as leather and wood. However, Messi’s plane has been upgraded inside.

The steps up and down the plane are engraved with the names of Leo (Messi), his wife Antonella and 3 sons, Thiago, Mateo, and Ciro. The tail of the plane comes with the number 10, the number associated with Messi’s entire career at Barcelona.

According to Goal, all custom details on Messi’s plane are made by a tuning company in Argentina. Therefore, Messi’s Gulfstream V costs up to 17.6 million USD. Meanwhile, a similar car, the same model in 2008 has a current price of about 13-15 million USD.

According to Marca, Messi bought this plane at the end of 2018. However,  The Sun and some newspapers in Europe said that this plane was leased by “El Pulga” for a long time. However, with a lot of customization from the outside to the inside, it is highly likely that this plane is already owned by Messi. Obviously, this striker has more than enough money to buy planes with a salary of more than 70 million euros, equivalent to more than 83 million USD per year.

According to European media, Messi will sit on this Gulfstream V flying to Paris on the evening of August 9 local time (morning of August 10, Hanoi time).

This  Gulfstream V is Messi’s second most expensive vehicle, ahead of the Pagani Zonda (worth $1.6 million) and below the 1957 Ferrari 335 S Spider Scaglietti (more than $37 million). However, the aforementioned supercar duo only stopped at rumors, no one had ever seen Messi appear next to the  Pagani Zonda and  Ferrari 335 S Spider Scaglietti.

In recent years, high-income individuals in the football world have begun to turn to more expensive and luxurious vehicles than supercars. In 2019, Neymar spent 15 million USD on the helicopter Airbus H-145. After a year, Ronaldo spent more than 7 million USD to buy the yacht Azimut Grande.